1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image-recording apparatus, more precisely to an image-recording apparatus for recording an image on a light and heat sensitive recording material.
2. Description of the Related Art
In conventional photo-recording systems such as, typically, those for silver photography, films such as negative or positive films are exposed to light to form images thereon, and then developed. The image information thus recorded on the developed films is optically printed on printing paper, which is then processed with a processing solution to obtain prints. Color negative films generally have a layer to be exposed to blue light to form a yellow color image thereon, a layer to be exposed to green light to form a magenta color image thereon, and a layer to be exposed to red light to form a cyan color image thereon. In a developing process, latent image-bearing silver halide grains in the film are reduced to silver while a developer used is oxidized, and the oxidized product is reacted with a coupler (coupling reaction) to form a color image. The non-developed silver halides and the developed silver are removed with a bleach-fixer in a bleach-fixing process that follows the developing process. Then, color printing paper is exposed to light through the resulting negative color image, and developed, bleached and fixed in the same manner as above to obtain a color print. Hence, most conventional photo-recording systems are wet systems that use processing solutions. Therefore, processing apparatuses are large, and processing costs are often high.
On the other hand, a simple and rapid method has been developed for processing silver halide photographic materials through thermal development. For this method, some systems are commercially available on the market, such as Fuji Photo Film""s Pictrography and Pictrostat. However, this method of thermal development requires a process of transferring dyes formed through thermal development onto an image-receiving material to give prints, and a drawback is that it produces waste material.
Given this situation, a mono-sheet type, light and heat sensitive recording material capable of forming a latent image thereon through exposure to light and capable of being processed by heat to develop the latent image is now attracting much attention in the art, with hopes of constructing a completely dry system for image formation that does not produce waste material. However, the light and heat sensitive recording material is still problematic in that it contains moisture and other volatile substances, and images printed thereon are often mottled because of the moisture and other volatile substances in the recording material. It is thought that moisture and the like in the recording material vaporize when the recording material is developed by heating, and locally adhere onto the recording surface of the material, whereby the thermal sensitivity of a moisture-adhered portion is lowered, which causes mottling of the printed image. This problem of mottling can be solved by prolonging the time for development, but this leads to another problem in that the image-recording system is not convenient.
An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and to provide an image-recording apparatus for a completely dry system that is capable of forming good print images with no mottling and without producing waste materials.
To attain the object described above, the present invention provides an image-recording apparatus that includes: a casing section which encases a light and heat sensitive recording material; an optical recording section, downstream of the casing section, which exposes the light and heat sensitive recording material, which has been fed from the casing section, for recording a latent image; a thermal developing section, downstream of the optical recording section, which develops the latent image by heating; a moisture content-controlling section, upstream of the thermal developing section, which controls moisture content of the light and heat sensitive recording material after exposure; and an optical fixing section, downstream of the thermal developing section, which irradiates light for fixing a developed image.
In the apparatus of the present invention, a light and heat sensitive recording material is fed from the casing section to the optical recording section, in which it is exposed to light to thereby have the latent image recorded thereon. In the apparatus, the moisture content of the light and heat sensitive recording material is controlled in the moisture content-controlling section after exposure and before development, and the latent image formed on the recording material is thereafter developed by heating in the thermal developing section. Then, the developed image is irradiated with light in the optical fixing section and is thus fixed on the recording material. In this manner, the latent image formed on the recording material is thermally developed, and the thus-developed image is then optically fixed thereon through irradiation with light, and the process does not require a processing solution or an image-receiving member. Accordingly, in this image-recording apparatus, images can be recorded on recording materials with a completely dry system, and no waste materials are left after the process of image formation. In addition, in this apparatus, the moisture content of the light and heat sensitive recording material is controlled in the moisture content-controlling section after exposure and before development. Therefore, the moisture content of the recording material can, before the material is thermally developed, be controlled suitably so as to prevent uneven development. Because the recording material does not contain enough moisture to cause uneven development, the recording material can be uniformly developed by heating, to provide good images with no mottled printing thereon.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the moisture content-controlling section includes at least one of a heating device that heats the light and heat sensitive recording material and a moistening device that moistens the light and heat sensitive recording material.
Ordinary light and heat sensitive recording materials are free from the problem of uneven development in thermal development when moisture content thereof is low. For controlling the moisture content, therefore, these ordinary light and heat sensitive recording materials are heated by a heating device to remove moisture and thereby reduce the moisture content. However, some light and heat sensitive recording materials perform better when containing a certain amount of moisture. Therefore, for controlling the moisture content, these light and heat sensitive recording materials are moistened by a moistening device to give moisture and increase the moisture content. By using both a heating device and a moistening device, the moisture content of a light and heat sensitive recording material can be decreased or increased in any desired manner.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the moisture content-controlling section includes a moisture content-measuring device that measures the moisture content of the light and heat sensitive recording material for generating a measurement signal; and a moisture content-controlling device that controls the moisture content of the light and heat sensitive recording material by at least one of heating and moistening, on the basis of the measurement signal of the moisture content-measuring device.
In the moisture content-controlling section, the moisture content-measuring device is for measuring the moisture content of the exposed light and heat sensitive recording material; and the moisture content-controlling device is for controlling the moisture content of the recording material by heating and/or moistening the recording material on the basis of signals from the moisture content-measuring device. In this embodiment of the present invention, the moisture content-controlling device functions to control the moisture content of the exposed light and heat sensitive recording material on the basis of the signals from the moisture content-measuring device. Thus, the recording material is heated when the moisture content is high, and when its moisture content is low, the exposed light and heat sensitive recording material is not heated but may be moistened. Thus, the moisture content of the exposed light and heat sensitive recording material is well controlled before the recording material is developed by heating.
In still another embodiment of the present invention, the exposed light and heat sensitive recording material is heated from a side thereof which is opposite to an exposure surface side thereof.
When the exposed light and heat sensitive recording material is heated, moisture is evaporated away through its exposed surface, which has recording layers and other layers thereon. Therefore, when the material is heated from the side opposite to the exposed surface, as in this embodiment, the moisture is more readily evaporated away. Accordingly, the moisture content-controlling treatment can be effected within a short period of time, and good print images can be efficiently obtained.
In still another embodiment of the present invention, the moisture content-controlling device controls the moisture content of the light and heat sensitive recording material such that a measurement value from the moisture content-measuring device approaches a setting value.
A desired value of the moisture content of the light and heat sensitive recording material to be processed in the apparatus of the present invention is preset, and the moisture content of the recording material is, after exposure to light, controlled by the moisture content-controlling device such that the moisture content values measured by the moisture content-measuring device get closer to the desired value. For example, when a measured value is higher than this preset value, the recording material is heated, and when the measured value is lower than the preset value, the recording material is not heated.
In still another embodiment of the present invention, the apparatus is equipped with an exhaust device that sucks and discharges vapors.
In this embodiment, vapors from the heated light and heat sensitive recording material are discharged through the exhaust section by suction, and are therefore prevented from staying in or condensing in the apparatus, and causing problems in the apparatus. Accordingly, the apparatus of this embodiment assures stable image formation.
The light and heat sensitive recording material to be processed in the image-recording apparatus of the present invention may contain a photo-curable composition. A recording material of this type is exposed to light that has passed through or been reflected by an image original, or is exposed to light through optical scanning of image data. Thus, the photo-curable composition in the recording material is photo-cured to form a latent image on the recording material. The recording material is then heated, and a color-forming or color-erasing component in a non-cured portion, depending on the latent image formed, moves inside the recording material to thereby form a color image. In addition, when the surface of the recording material is irradiated with light, the image formed is cured and fixed thereon, and any unnecessary coloring component is eliminated. This image-recording process is useful not only for recording black-and-white images but also for recording color images. The light and heat sensitive recording material of this type may have any of light and heat sensitive recording layers (a) to (f) mentioned below.
A photosensitive thermal layer (a) contains 1) thermally-responsive microcapsules which encapsulate a color-forming component A and, outside the microcapsules, 2) a photo-polymerizable composition which contains at least i) a compound B which is substantially colorless and has, within the same molecule, a polymerizable group and a site which reacts with the color-forming component A to form color, and ii) a photoinitiator.
A light and heat sensitive recording layer (b) contains 1) thermally-responsive microcapsules which encapsulate a color-forming component A and, outside the microcapsules, 2) a photo-polymerizable composition which contains at least i) a substantially colorless compound C which reacts with the color-forming component A to form color, ii) a photo-polymerizable compound D and iii) a photoinitiator.
A light and heat sensitive recording layer (c) contains 1) thermally-responsive microcapsules which encapsulate a color-forming component A and, outside the microcapsules, 2) a photo-polymerizable composition which includes at least i) a substantially colorless compound C which reacts with the color-forming component A to form color, ii) a photo-polymerizable compound Dp which has a site that suppresses the reaction of the color-forming component A with the compound C, and iii) a photoinitiator.
A light and heat sensitive recording layer (d) contains 1) thermally-responsive microcapsules which encapsulate a substantially colorless compound C which reacts with a color-forming component A to form color and, outside the microcapsules, 2) a photo-polymerizable composition which contains at least i) the color-forming component A, ii) a photo-polymerizable compound D and iii) a photoinitiator.
A photo-curable photosensitive thermal layer (e) includes an oxidant precursor E which is encapsulated in thermally-responsive microcapsules, an activator G which exists outside the thermally-responsive microcapsules and which reacts with the oxidant precursor E to generate an oxidant F, and a dye forming coupler H which couples to the oxidant F to generate a dye. By irradiation of light, an irradiated portion of the light and heat sensitive recording layer (e) is cured.
A light and heat sensitive recording layer (f) includes the oxidant precursor E outside thermally-responsive microcapsules, the activator G which is encapsulated in the thermally-responsive microcapsules and which reacts with the oxidant precursor E to generate the oxidant F, and the dye forming coupler H which couples to the oxidant F to form a dye. By irradiation of light, an irradiated portion is cured.